Desire For Integration Research Articles

DIALECT PREFERENCES AMONG THE SYRIAN REFUGEES IN JORDAN: A MIXED-METHODS STUDY

Background and Purpose: Taking into account the scarcity of research on Syrian refugees from the perspective of sociolinguistics, this research explored Syrian refugees’ reasons for dialect preferences when they communicate in various domains of life in Jordan. Methodology: The study employed a sequential mixed-methods design, which involved collecting both quantitative and qualitative data. The quantitative data were collected using a questionnaire of 20 items. Qualitative data were collected using the semi-structured interviews which were conducted with 18 Syrian refugees. While the quantitative data analysis was done using descriptive statistics, the transcripts of the semi-structured interviews were coded and analysed thematically. Findings: The results of the study showed that the majority of Syrian refugees use the Syrian Dialect with family members, Syrian friends, and colleagues at work, and Syrian neighbours. Further, the results revealed that most of the Syrian refugees prefer to use the Jordanian Dialect when they communicate with Jordanian neighbours and friends, and with Jordanians at the workplace and in educational contexts. The study revealed that the major reasons for dialect preferences among Syrian refugees are a desire for integration, close connection to their families, a sense of cultural familiarity, comfort in communication, interlocutors, and the importance of the formal context. Contributions: The findings of this research can contribute to research in sociolinguistics in terms of understanding the Syrian refugees’ dialect preferences. Keywords: Syrian refugees, sociolinguistics, dialect preferences, Jordan, integration. Cite as: Samaher, F., & Salasiah, C. L. (2024). Dialect preferences among the Syrian refugees in Jordan: A mixed-methods study. Journal of Nusantara Studies, 9(2), 106-130. http://dx.doi.org/10.24200/jonus.vol9iss2pp106-130

Scientific competence during medical education - insights from a cross-sectional study at a German Medical School

BackgroundMedical knowledge regarding the pathophysiology, diagnosis and treatment of diseases is constantly evolving. To effectively incorporate these findings into professional practice, it is crucial that scientific competencies are a central component of medical education. This study seeks to analyse the current state of scientific education and students’ desires for integration into the curriculum.MethodsFrom October to December 2022, a survey was distributed at the Medical Faculty Dresden to all medical students from the 1st to 5th academic year (AY). The survey investigates current expectations of applying scientific competencies later in professional life, and the students were asked to self-assess various scientific skills and in relation to the National Competence Based Catalogue of Learning Objectives for Undergraduate Medical Education. The self-assessments were objectified through a competence test with ten multiple-choice questions. The desire for curricular teaching was inquired.Results860 students completed the survey. This corresponds to a response rate of 64%. In the 5th AY, approximately 80% of the participants stated that they expected to work with scientific literature on a daily to monthly basis in future professional life and to communicate corresponding scientific findings to patients. Only 30–40% of the 5th AY rate their scientific competencies as sufficient to do this appropriately. This corresponds with the self-assessed competencies that only slightly increased over the 5 AYs from 14.1 ± 11.7 to 21.3 ± 13.8 points (max. 52) and is also reflected in the competence test (1st AY 3.6 ± 1.75 vs. 5th AY 5.5 ± 1.68, max. 10 points). Half of the students in the 4th and 5th AYs were dissatisfied with the current teaching of scientific skills. The majority preferred the implementation of a science curriculum (56%), preferably as seminars dealing with topics such as literature research, analysis, and science communication.ConclusionsThe results show discrepancies between expectations of using scientific knowledge in everyday professional life, self-rated and objectively recorded competencies, and the current state of curricular teaching of scientific competencies. There is a strong need for adequate practical training, particularly in critical analyses of scientific literature, which enables the communication of scientific knowledge to patients.

Perspectives of Canadian health leaders on the relationship between medical assistance in dying and palliative and end-of-life care services: a qualitative study.

Medical assistance in dying (MAiD) was legalized in Canada in 2016, but coordination of MAiD and palliative and end-of-life care (PEOLC) services remains underdeveloped. We sought to understand the perspectives of health leaders across Canada on the relationship between MAiD and PEOLC services and to identify opportunities for improved coordination. In this quantitative study, we purposively sampled health leaders across Canada with expertise in MAiD, PEOLC, or both. We conducted semi-structured interviews between April 2021 and January 2022. Interview transcripts were coded independently by 2 researchers and reconciled to identify key themes using content analysis. We applied the PATH framework for Integrated Health Services to guide data collection and analysis. We conducted 36 interviews. Participants expressed diverse views about the optimal relationship between MAiD and PEOLC, and the desirability of integration, separation, or coordination of these services. We identified 11 themes to improve the relationship between the services across 4 PATH levels: client-centred services (e.g., educate public); health operations (e.g., cultivate compassionate and proactive leadership); health systems (e.g., conduct broad and inclusive consultation and planning); and intersectoral initiatives (e.g., provide standard practice guidelines across health care systems). Health leaders recognized that cooperation between MAiD and PEOLC services is required for appropriate referrals, care coordination, and patient care. They identified the need for public and provider education, standardized practice guidelines, relationship-building, and leadership. Our findings have implications for MAiD and PEOLC policy development and clinical practice in Canada and other jurisdictions.

Cultural Crossroads and Subaltern Realities in Diasporic Discourse: Exploring the Sense of Belonging in Lahiri and Mistry’s Narratives

This study examines the theme of cultural navigation and the sense of belonging in Jhumpa Lahiri's novel The Namesake and Rohinton Mistry's A Fine Balance. Focusing on the Indian diaspora, the study meticulously explores the multifaceted dimensions of subalternity embedded in the characters' experiences of cultural displacement, identity negotiation, and socio-economic adversities. This research paper aims to elucidate the complex dynamics of belonging in a diverse and interconnected global community by conducting a comparative analysis of the many ways in which these narratives portray the journeys of people bridging many cultures. In navigating the complex fabric of two separate cultures, this paper explores the challenges, triumphs, and transformations of the protagonists. It investigates the literary techniques employed by Lahiri and Mistry to portray the psychological and emotional aspects of cultural adaptation, illuminating the characters' changing self-perceptions. It also examines how society and family dynamics shape the identities of the characters, highlighting the conflict between the desire for integration and clinging to one's traditional origins. Through a thematic analysis, this study seeks to uncover the authors' perspectives on cultural hybridity, shedding light on the broader implications for individuals striving to reconcile their heritage with the demands of contemporary life. The study also looks at how the characters' sense of place affects their sense of belonging, examining how the writers employ location as a narrative device to highlight the contrasts between cultures. This comparative approach aims to provide various insights into the ways in which Lahiri and Mistry articulate the multifaceted nature of cultural identity and how it changes over time and contributes to a deeper understanding of the intricate interplay between culture, identity, and belonging in contemporary literature.

The ‘Spirit’ of Schooling: The relevance of the sense of a calling on the school experiences of secondary-school Roma/Ciganos students

In The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism (PE), Max Weber examines the ecological domination of instrumental rationality to the detriment of value-oriented action. The concept of the calling (Beruf in German) becomes a key one for interpreting the process of value rationalization. One can find Weberian value-rationality among the Portuguese Roma/Ciganos, who seek alternative livelihood strategies via schooling, although they are still characterized by a high rate of early school dropouts, with a very low number of students attending secondary education. The EDUCIG (School performance among Ciganos/Roma: action research and co-design) project was launched in 2019 to grasp the multiple factors involved in this social problem. The project interview-based analysis entailed the participation of 31 Roma/Ciganos students from the metropolitan areas of Lisbon and Porto. Results suggest that despite the social, cultural and economic constraints affecting their school pathways, the academic success of young Roma/Ciganos is facilitated by the influence of religion, specifically the Pentecostal Evangelical Church and its respective values. Moreover, we can recognize the emergence of a new ‘spirit’ in these young Roma/Ciganos, a ‘spirit’ that does not aim at instant gratification but represents an investment in the future and, simultaneously, a desire for integration.

Clarifying a Muddy Pond: A Pākehā Therapist’s Account of Navigating a Critical Moment in the Integration of Narrative Therapy and Person-Centred Therapy

In this paper, as a Pākehā[1]/non-Māori therapist, I reflect on my desire for integration between two diverse modalities: person-centred therapy and narrative therapy. Drawing on the dissonance experienced in a moment of a conversation where I responded solely with one modality, I question whether integration of diverse approaches is possible. I consider the extent to which I, as a therapist, am integrated. I conclude that theoretical consonance might not be possible, and an alternative goal might be integration in the therapist between their therapeutic actions and intent. Through actively reflecting on intentions beneath the surface of the work, for me, a muddy pond became clear.

The Concept of Sustainable Development and International Environmental Law

The article is devoted to the influence of the concept of sustainable development on international environmental law. This concept, in many ways, sets guidelines for the adoption of its norms and thereby defines the contours of legal environmental regimes. Based on the analysis of international UN documents, starting with the Stockholm Declaration of 1972, then the RIO 92 Declaration, the Johannesburg Declaration of 2002, the Millennium Declaration and the Sustainable Development Goals, the evolution of the concept of sustainable development, the shift in emphasis in its content and the desire for integration between the three dimensions of sustainable development — economic, social and environmental interests — for all states is presented. The article identifies several aspects that determine the importance of the concept of sustainable development for international environmental law: 1) the content of sustainable development in the context of State obligations; 2) the mutual influence of advisory acts and norms of international environmental law on the specification and implementation of the concept of sustainable development; 3) the interaction of various branches of international law in the context of sustainable development.

National and Ethnic Enclaves in the Modern World: Nature, Regulatory Instruments (Public Law Aspect). Part 1

National and ethnic enclaves constitute one of the forms of "parallel spaces" materialization (In the entire palette of inherent properties) and, therefore, it is legitimate to qualify them as a unique practice of refraction of the concept of multiculturalism. Historical experience has shown that the presumption of mutual desire for integration based on the recognition of the concept of multiculturalism as a guiding principle of relations (primarily in relation to European states and migrant groups within their borders) did not justify itself due to insufficient consideration of the entire scope of influencing factors (risks). On this basis, the author emphasizes the importance of applying an approach the structure of which includes differentiated complex methodological formulas (political and legal, socio-economic, national-cultural) that encourage harmonization of "foreign" authentic cultures (including religious practices, behavioural patterns in the framework of social environments) with a dominant and historically determined culture of the host community with the recognition of the primacy of its culture (including a heterogeneous nature).Enclaves are viewed as a spatial-geographical and socio-institutional phenomenon. The spatial and geographical component reflects the infrastructure landscape of the enclave, including the inherent economic, production, and environmental features in certain geographical coordinates (at the location). A socio-institutional variable characterizes a community that has appeared and functions by virtue of and within certain groups of co-identity parameters (national, religious, linguistic, legal (usually legal), etc.), emphasizes its inherent connections (internal and external). Under national-ethnic enclaves it is proposed to understand separate quasi-territorial formations, where, due to objectively forced conditions, national minorities (mainly migrant groups) live compactly (permanently or temporarily), adhering to an authentic way of life that differs from the generally accepted way (mainstream) in the host society. The paper highlights the characteristic imperative and optional features of enclaves, emphasizes the heterogeneous configuration of the social structure of enclaves, investigates the reasons for the formation and functions of ethno-national enclaves, identifies the similarities and differences between enclaves and ghettos and ethno-burbes.

Perceptions of Hematology Among Palliative Care Physicians: Results of a Nationwide Survey

ContextPalliative care integration for patients with hematologic diseases has lagged behind solid-organ malignancies. Previous work has characterized hematologist perspectives, but less is known about palliative care physician views of this phenomenon. ObjectivesTo examine palliative care physician attitudes and beliefs regarding hematologic diseases, patient care, and collaboration. MethodsA 44-item survey containing Likert and free-response items was mailed to 1000 AAHPM physician members. Sections explored respondent comfort with specific diagnoses, palliative care integration, relationships with hematologists, and hematology-specific patient care. Logistic regression models with generalized estimating equations were used to compare parallel Likert responses. Free responses were analyzed using thematic analysis. ResultsThe response rate was 55.5%. Respondents reported comfort managing symptoms in leukemia (84.0%), lymphoma (92.1%), multiple myeloma (92.9%), and following hematopoietic stem cell transplant (51.6%). Fewer expressed comfort with understanding disease trajectory (64.9%, 75.7%, 78.5%, and 35.4%) and discussing prognosis (71.0%, 82.6%, 81.6%, and 40.6%). 97.6% of respondents disagreed that palliative care and hematology are incompatible. 50.6% felt that palliative care physicians’ limited hematology-specific knowledge hinders collaboration. 89.4% felt that relapse should trigger referral. 80.0% felt that hospice referrals occurred late. In exploring perceptions of hematology-palliative care relationships, three themes were identified: misperceptions of palliative care, desire for integration, and lacking a shared model of understanding. ConclusionThese data inform efforts to integrate palliative care into hematologic care at large, echoing previous studies of hematologist perspectives. Palliative care physicians express enthusiasm for caring for these patients, desire for improved understanding of palliative care, and ongoing opportunities to improve hematology-specific knowledge and skills.

Don-Juanism: Value Dispositions, Preferences, Manners

ABSTRACT Don Juanism is a type of consciousness, value system, and mode of behavior specific to amorous–erotic relationships. It reflects an overall image of Don Juan as presented in Molière’s famous comedy Dom Juan ou le Festin de Pierre and in many other works of art. This image is internally bifurcated and interpreted in various ways in cultural history. On the one hand, Don Juan is known as a gallant suitor, an affectionate philanderer, a virtuoso of pleasure, and a ladies’ man, thus justifying our perception of Don Juan in relation to the art of love. On the other hand, Don Juan is seen as a rake, a seducer, a destroyer of women’s hearts, and a disaster to husbands, in which case Don Juan symbolizes willfulness and profligacy. The two sides of the Don Juan image developed in two different symbolic contexts: the former in the amorous–erotic context and the latter in the moral–ethical context. The main feature of Don-Juanist’s amorous–erotic connotations is that they are actualized precisely in relation to courtly gallantry, a woman’s expectations of a knight, the romantic cavalier, the wonderful lover. Don Juanism does not, however, withstand scrutiny from the standpoint of philosophy and wisdom of love, where desire for integrity and perfection, generosity and devotion, are foregrounded in relationships. However, philosophy of love finds itself in a difficult situation when faced with Don Juanism: at least one of its sides is relevant to the understanding of love that is most popular among ordinary people, where love is a romantic–erotic experience that reflects sensual lust, and uniting in love is definitely understood in the sexual sense, as intercourse.

Феномен бессознательного в психике и духовное становление подростков, юношей и девушек

The article shows the peculiarities of the unconscious sphere and their importance in the formation of the spiritual sphere of the personality of adolescent and teenage years on the basis of instinct, archetypes and unconscious attitudes. The problem of instincts must be approached from the perspective of methodology, understanding it as a mental, unconscious phenomenon. The psychological side is currently central and important for youngsters and teenagers. Fantasies, images, desires, inducements, which can be based on archetypes and unconscious mindsets, play a special role in the formation of the spiritual sphere of the personality in adolescent and teenage years. The sexual instinct of teenagers should be treated as an unconscious phenomenon with enormous potential. The factor of ‘humanizing’ instincts in general and sexual instinct in particular, is the formation of personality archetypes, which include fantasies, images, desires, inducements of teenagers and their connection with the archetype, as a psychological determinant being the main function. In adolescence and youth, mental energy sublimates. Psychological determinants of the unconscious sphere at teenage and junior age can cause imagination, creativity, to define it as subject in a social situation of development, identification of the personality, to assist formation of personal qualities, interaction in a group of people and the ability to achieve goals. In prepubescent years and adolescent age there are appear a desire for freedom, an effort to find meaning, creative activity, a desire for integrity, love, value, an appeal to and unity with the spiritual, higher divine world, which are manifested as signs of the archetype ‘selfhood’.

Tendencies of Reforming Legislative Regulation in the Field of Evidence in Civil Procedure of Ukraine

The radical political changes that have taken place in recent years in connection with Ukraine's desire for integration into the European community have led to another judicial reform. As part of the legislative reform, a new version of the Code of Civil Procedure (CPC) was developed and adopted in 2017. The aim of this study is to identify, structure and analyze the fundamental changes that have occurred in the new version of the Code, and to trace outline trends in legislation of Ukraine of such concept as proof and reliability of evidence. The research substantiates the need to separate electronic evidence as an independent means of proof in civil justice, to analyze new innovations in Ukrainian law, and to show progressive vectors of change in civil law in Ukraine. This study may form the basis for further research into civil justice reform.

Mulheres paulistanas no Prouni: mediações entre a universidade e a precariedade

O presente artigo pretende discutir o lugar de precariedade de mulheres paulistanas contempladas pelo Programa Universidade para Todos (Prouni) no ensino superior privado, comparando dois perfis caracterizados por área ocupacional, idade e localização do campus universitário de uma grande instituição de ensino privado de São Paulo. Criado no ano de 2005 pelo governo Lula, o Prouni se firmou como uma política pública cujo propósito de formar mão de obra qualificada abriu espaço para que 1,4 milhão de pessoas de classes baixas chegassem ao ensino superior privado até 2014. Com base em entrevistas inéditas e no trabalho de campo desenvolvido entre os anos de 2012 e 2014, trabalhamos metodologicamente como um estudo de caso ampliado,com o objetivo de mapear as trajetórias de vida e as visões de mundo cultivadas por essas mulheres diante de temas centrais em seus lugares de classe: o trabalho, a educação, a mobilidade e, evidentemente, as relações sociais de sexo. Em cada grupo, a precariedade se apresenta em suas especificidades, em que a flexibilização ressignifica a própria heterogeneidade do mercado de trabalho brasileiro.

Науково-методичні засади оцінювання розвитку сільських територій: український та міжнародний досвід

The current state of the economy of Ukraine and the desire for integration into the European Community necessitates significant changes in governance processes at all levels, requires the development of measures and mechanisms for the sustainable development of the Ukrainian village and the earliest possible decision-making in this field. It is worth noting that rural areas are a very difficult object of research and management, so there is a need to determine methodological approaches to assess their status, strategic priorities for overcoming negative trends that hinder their development, finding ways to solve emerging problems and components to ensure the comprehensive development and development of the Ukrainian village.The article deals with the scientific and methodological bases of assessment of the current state of rural development, the interpretation of the concept of evaluation, the structural scheme and key stages of the assessment of rural development, the constituent elements of the assessment: indicators, indicators, coefficients, highlighted the international experience of ensuring the socio-economic development of rural areas. General scientific and special economic methods are applied in the article. In particular: analysis and synthesis, induction and deduction, abstract-logical, economic-mathematical modeling.The aforementioned studies provide a strong methodological and methodological basis for determining the status of rural areas, identifying external and internal threats of socio-economic nature. It is worth noting that there is no single commonly agreed set of partial indicators for assessing social infrastructure. The most commonly used indicators used to assess the development of rural territories are those provided by the State Statistics Office, whose analysis and comparison over the years makes it possible to assess the status and identify changes in the socio-economic phenomena of the studied territories.Carrying out such an assessment makes it possible to identify external and internal threats of socio-economic and environmental character, facilitates the development of a set of effective measures for institutional regulation, identifying key areas for rural development.

Language Ecology in Cyprus, Sweden and Estonia: Bilingual Russian-Speaking Families in Multicultural Settings

We investigated language transmission in Russian-speaking families in multilingual settings in Cyprus, Estonia and Sweden. What they have in common is their Russian-language background and the minority status of their native language. In Cyprus and Sweden, participants mainly come from immigrant and mixed-marriage communities, while in Estonia they live in a bilingual society, where Estonian is a prestigious language and Russian has low status. To investigate the complex contexts of the informants’ language choices, the language ecology theory was chosen as a theoretical framework. Particular attention was paid to similarities and differences in the three country groups under investigation. Written questionnaires and oral sociolinguistic interviews were used for data collection among Russian-speaking informants in the three countries. We asked whether Russian as the first language was transmitted to the second generation and why. The attitudes towards bilingualism and Russian language transmission (including the change of these attitudes over time) – depending on the parents’ success in bringing up children bilingually – seemed to matter. Parental language choice is one of the main factors contributing to successful transmission. A lot depends on whether there was a desire for integration with the dominant language community, for staying isolated and only preserving the home language, or for having a balanced bilingual/multilingual approach and positive attitude towards both majority and minority languages. The socio-economic status, level of education and mother’s employment status played crucial roles in language transmission and attitudes. The linguistic repertoire of the father (minority, majority, or mixed) also had an effect.

Rhythms of the Pachakuti: Indigenous Uprising and State Power in Bolivia

Of the many studies of Bolivia’s popular uprisings of 2000–2005, Raquel Gutiérrez Aguilar’s participatory-observer account stands out. In addition to furnishing an innovative framework for understanding the “rhythms” of social struggle during those years, the book grapples with some of the tensions and dilemmas common to diverse emancipatory struggles. This translation of the 2008 original (with a helpful new foreword by Sinclair Thomson) makes the analysis available to English readers.Gutiérrez Aguilar’s first objective is to illuminate the “interior horizon” of the forces that mobilized during this period (xx). She sees two common threads: an anticapitalist quest to recover collective resource wealth and an anti-authoritarian struggle to replace the state with participatory decision-making structures. These two impulses were central to the successful campaign against water privatization in Cochabamba in 2000; the Aymara protests over water, land, and coca cultivation rights starting that same year; Chapare coca farmers’ resistance to forced eradication in 2000–2003; and the popular coalition against neoliberal hydrocarbon policies in 2003–2005.For Gutiérrez Aguilar these dual aims distinguish these movements from the older, “orthodox” left. Whereas a “national-popular,” state-centric perspective guided many struggles in twentieth-century Bolivia, the revolts of 2000–2005 were animated at least as much by a “communitarian-popular” ideal that prioritized participatory democracy. Many recent Bolivian activists sought not to take state power but to replace the institutions of governance themselves. Nor did they merely want to return privatized water or natural gas to state hands, insisting instead that resources “should be self-managed by the citizens themselves” (26). The Quechua concept of pachakuti—“an inversion of the fundamental order of things” (51)—captures this far-reaching desire to supplant existing social relationships with new ones modeled on indigenous and popular communal norms. I think the book oversimplifies the twentieth-century Left just a bit, but its analysis of recent struggles is still compelling.Gutiérrez Aguilar’s second overarching objective is to explain why the resultant changes fell short of popular aspirations. Though the Evo Morales administration (2006–present) has partially fulfilled some popular demands, Morales’s MAS (Movement to Socialism) party represented a relatively conservative current among the resistance. For example, while many demanded renationalization of gas under “social control” (217), the MAS favored only a substantial increase in taxes on private companies. In various ways, it has helped to suppress and domesticate more radical elements.The explanation for this outcome, Gutiérrez Aguilar argues, lies not only in external actors but also in radical movements’ own mistakes and contradictions. A key recurring tension was between “the rejection of the general order” and a desire for integration into that order on different terms (48). Many activists remained wedded to the routine of negotiating with the state, perhaps lured by the prospect of winning concessions. At crucial moments, they seemed to cede decision-making power back to state officials, allowing their demands to be “translated and locked into dominant state conceptual and linguistic codes” (65). Also lacking was detailed movement debate about what new institutions should look like. Developing a longer-term collective vision might have been difficult, but it arguably could have made popular forces more resistant to co-optation.Gutiérrez Aguilar’s analysis raises crucial questions for social movements everywhere: If some sort of engagement with existing state institutions is necessary to achieve reforms, how can movements avoid state co-optation in the process? How can radical, antistate forces avoid being eclipsed by more reformist state-oriented competitors, as happened with the rise of the MAS? Rhythms of the Pachakuti admittedly offers no clear answers. Overcoming capitalism and the state are, in the author’s words, “a challenge and an open agenda for everyone” (188).

Cues for Integration: Foreign Policy Beliefs and German Parliamentarians’ Support for European Integration

How do foreign policy beliefs affect German parliamentarians’ (MPs) support for European integration? Despite important advances, the literature has overlooked the effect of foreign policy beliefs on national representatives’ attitudes toward integration. This study provides a systematic investigation of the role foreign policy beliefs play in shaping German MPs’ support for European integration. I argue that given the complex and contentious character of European integration politics MPs derive heuristic cues from their foreign policy beliefs to form opinions on the desirability of integration. Using data from an original survey conducted with members of the seventeenth German Bundestag, I show that a belief in multilateralism increases support for European integration while isolationist and hawkish foreign policy orientations decrease support. These results indicate that support for European integration is not merely determined by party ideology, electoral pressure or economic considerations, but also has a psychological foundation shaped by politicians’ core beliefs about how the world of international politics operates.

EU Refugee Crisis Impact on the European Labor Market

Abstract The advent and increasing wave of refugees arrived through various channels in Europe last year produce anxiety both in the EU leadership and in the management and organization of European states. Assessing the impact on the local labor market, on the human resources available and on the cost of insertion on the labor market in the EU it is difficult to quantify at present as long as it is not known what will be the final number of these refugees, the level of training them, and not the least the desire for integration into the European system of life and work. Prospects for reducing the number of active population in the EU in the coming years and increasing the lifetime rate require management organizations to carry out careful studies and to analyze and find solutions to integrate the active refugees in the domestic workforce, to assess the increased level training costs and integration in the local organizational culture and, not the least, the impact on the effectiveness of performed activities.

Cosmopolis or the New Jerusalem: Modern Social Imaginaries and the Catholic University

Charles Taylor's exploration of modern social imaginaries sheds light on the differing ways that university faculty and leaders today reflect and help shape the world. This article examines Taylor's work as a point of departure for suggesting two contrasting models of social imaginary abroad in university education—namely, cosmopolis and new Jerusalem. It explores what a robust Catholic imagination represented by the latter model might mean for the contemporary Catholic university, especially as regards the desire for integration of knowledge that is truly reflective of the term “university.” It pays particular attention to Bernard Lonergan's notion of cosmopolis as a way of imagining anew the ways that Catholic universities form students and contribute to research and scholarship, and emphasizes the task of faculty formation as central to Catholic mission in the academy.

Heading west? Georgia's Euro-Atlantic path

Events in Ukraine in 2014 are likely to transform the presence and role of western institutions such as NATO in the post-Soviet area. The crisis has starkly revealed the limits of their influence within Russia's ‘zone of privileged interest’, as well as the lack of internal unity within these organizations vis-a-vis relations with Moscow and future engagement with the area. This will have long-term implications for the South Caucasus state of Georgia, whose desire for integration into the Euro-Atlantic community remains a key priority for its foreign and security policy-makers. This article examines the main motivators behind Georgia's Euro-Atlantic path and its foreign policy stance, which has remained unchanged for over a decade despite intense pressure from Russia. It focuses on two aspects of Georgia's desire for integration with European and Euro-Atlantic structures: its desire for security and the belief that only a western alignment can guarantee its future development, and the notion of Georgia's ‘European’ identity. The notion of ‘returning’ to Europe and the West has become a common theme in Georgian political and popular discourse, reflecting the belief of many in the country that they are ‘European’. This article explores this national strategic narrative and argues that the prevailing belief in a European identity facilitates, rather than supersedes, the central role of national interests in Georgian foreign policy.